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ARMY ROTC CADETS GRADUATE WITH HONORS FROM LEADERSHIP, ASSESSMENT COURSE

MANHATTAN-- Seven Army ROTC cadets with Kansas State University' s Wildcat Battalion have graduated from the U.S. Army's Leadership Development and Assessment Course with honors.

Honor graduates are cadets who exceed the standards and are in the top of their ranks, displaying strong leadership capabilities both professionally and tactically. Nationally, 18 percent of cadets graduate with honors from the course. Twenty-three percent of K-State's cadets took honors this summer.

Army ROTC cadets take part in the Leadership Development and Assessment Course at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., in the summer between their junior and senior years. The course is designed to assess each cadet's leadership ability and is critical to determining what type of jobs cadets will assume when they are commissioned as active-duty second lieutenants in the U.S. Army.

The camp runs 29 days. Cadets participate in physical training tests, weapons familiarization and land navigation training. They also spend time in confidence and leadership reaction courses. They take a refresher-training course on infantry tactics before going into the field for several days with only the gear they carry on their backs. To assess their leadership skills, cadets take turns leading squads, platoons and companies. In addition to formal evaluations, there are also self- and peer evaluations of each cadet's leadership abilities.

"I felt more than ready going into Leadership Development and Assessment Course because of the great leadership development at K-State," said Cadet Major Jake Piscal, the Wildcat Battalion's TAC officer. "The instructors and seniors worked very hard to help the juniors succeed and go above and beyond the standards. K-State' s Army ROTC program stood out among the rest of the schools because of the dedication of our senior leaders."

Piscal, senior in social sciences, Toms River, N.J., graduated with honors from the course.

"The course tests the mental, physical, and leadership abilities of the cadets, and by the end of the course, the cadre provide an accurate evaluation of a cadet's potential to lead," said Lt. Col. Scott Bridegam, professor and head of the department of military science and K-State Army ROTC.

K-State's honor graduates from U.S. Army's Leadership Development and Assessment Course include: